(from Biblical Literalism: A Gentile Heresy by John Shelby Spong)
". . . If we reduce this Matthean character (the Canaanite woman) to literal person, we can deal with her once and for all and then move on. If she is a symbol, an icon, her challenge will be eternal; her face will change throughout history, but her demands will remain, constantly challenging our security and eroding our barriers. Jewish readers of Matthew's gospel knew that she was a symbol. Gentile readers, later, would assume that she was a literal figure and that they had dealt with her once they had brought themselves to accept Canaanites. Perhaps we need to confront the possibility that Christianity has not failed, as our critics constantly assert; the reality, I believe, is that Christianity has never been understood and thus has never really been tried. . . "
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